


In Store

by Emmuzka



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: AU - one is a hockey player other one is not, Kid Fic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-16
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-14 08:57:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5737546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emmuzka/pseuds/Emmuzka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You expect for me to apologize?” Kessel doesn’t sound angry, or ashamed. He sounds tired. </p><p>“Uh.” Putting it like that, it sounds petty. <i>A millionaire calls to demand an apology from a man who put his charity stuff up for sale.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	In Store

It’s the time of the year again, when the teams crank up their video factories. Filler and image management is needed, so for weeks its hospital visits, photo sessions with cute animals, and in some cases, reading tweets aloud and participating in stupid pop quizzes. 

This time its purchasing winter clothes for children in need, with the said children. It sounded simple: Show up to the store, get paired with an adorable child that the Salvation Army has whisked there, and do some shopping. With some editing, it would probably look somewhat entertaining. 

Sid doesn’t particularly like this gig, but he likes kids, so okay then. The production wants to make it fun for the kids, but Sid has always thought that it is a bit exploitative, too. The team really did the charity, but basically only because they needed to earn good will points. 

It’s hot in the store. It’s closed for the filming, so maybe they turned the air conditioning down, too. 

The kids’ parents are there to see them off. They are kept near, probably to handle their offspring in a case of a meltdown, but the shooting is about the kids and the players only. Everyone wants to see adorable kids receiving free winter parkas and stuff, and there would be no point to remind the viewers that the parents of these kids are some poor bastards that can't afford to buy their children winter clothes.

The boy who's assigned to Sid is maybe ten years old. He’s blond and looks so much like an all-American boy-next-door in some tv show that Sid chuckles. Behind him stands a man who must be his father, a powerful looking guy with the same dirty blond hair and a red beard. Most of the kids are escorted by their moms. Maybe they are all single parent kids.

Sid starts with introducing himself, and then the production assistant shoos them to the shoe department. It takes about ten minutes for him to realize that talking about proper winter shoes only is not entertaining, but boring for him and the kid, too. So what else could he talk about?

“You like hockey?”

The kid’s eyes brighten. “I love hockey!”

"Oh yeah, what position you play?" Sid asks before he thinks better of it. The kid probably only collects hockey cards or some such, he’s here to pick up free stuff because Salvation Army vetted him as a child in need, and not because he'd be a fan. It’s just like Sid to live in his hockey bubble where he expects everyone to play. 

“I'm a goalie!”

“Oh, that's special!” Thank god the kid really played, otherwise it could have gone awkward. "In what team you are?"

Sid expects to hear a name of some local kids' team, but no. Now the kid looks conflicted and even sad. _Way to go Sid, what next, you'll make him cry?_

“I don't know if I can play because we just moved here and I don't have the gear."

 _Did they get lost in the move?_ Sid almost asks because he's a dumb fuck sometimes, but then catches himself. These children's families are poor, and hockey gear, especially goalie gear, costs a ton. If the kid's parents can't afford decent winter boots and a parka, goalie gear is definitely out of reach. "That's too bad." 

The situation surely sucks. _But it doesn't have to?_ Every player-child -pairing has their own camera man and a shop-provided assistant. The assistant hesitantly confirms that yes, they have a sports section, and yes, they offer hockey gear in child sizes. 

First, the production crew doesn't want to let them go to the sports section since its several floors up from where they're set, but then the director gets the cuteness potential of Sid purchasing some tiny goalie gear to a cute blond kid. And Sid will be really purchasing the gear, too. He is already feeling the production manager's eyes on his back and he knows that this will come from his own pocket. 

The kid's father trails their miniature production crew to the other part of the store. He doesn't look very happy for a guy whose kid will be getting free hockey gear worth of hundreds of dollars. 

Sid doesn't quite get it, but the father’s dismay just makes him spend even more on the kid. At least he knows how to appreciate it. The kid's eyes practically glow when he hears that yes, really, he can have all this gear, and the skates and a stick, too. The boy's enthusiasm catches Sid, too, and he eagerly uses his hockey gear knowledge to choose the quality stuff and the right fit. They end their shopping spree with Sid signing the helmet, the stick, the Fleury jersey and a couple of extra pucks, too. 

Sid feels the father’s eyes on him the whole time. He doesn't know what hell is his problem, anyway. Doesn't he like hockey? Is he from Philadelphia? 

Eventually they are rushed back for some group shots. To Sid's relief, some shopping assistant has already picked the winter gear for "his" kid, so they can skip filming that and the boy will still get the goods. 

After the filming ends, the crew does their best to pack up and leave as soon as possible. The Salvation Army representative guides the kids to their parents. Everybody leaving at the same time is quite a rush, and the families are ushered away before the parents can thank the players. The thank you-s and farewells were already delivered through a team representative, Sid is told. 

It's a bit of a bummer. Sid would have liked to shake the father's hand and see if he could have managed to crack a smile on his face. But oh well. 

And that is that, Sid thinks. Until a couple of weeks later, Kuniz shows him a news article, some filler piece on Puck Daddy, maybe. "You see something familiar?"

“What, why?" Sid looks at the article closer. it's illustrated with a bunch of photos of hokey gear on eBay. Except this is obviously brand new kids goalie gear, with _his autographs on them._

The fucker had put his kid's new gear for sale, and even used Sid’s signatures to crank up the price. He tries to shrug it off. Sometimes people just don't live to your expectations. But he can't fool himself: Sid knows that right after the practice he will go home and search everything he can find on the thing.

Sid learns that someone on Reddit had realized the similarities in the eBay listings and the brand new Penguins video presenting their charity gig. Maybe a week after they’d received the stuff, the regular gear had ended up on Graigslist and the helmet, jersey, sticks and pucks on eBay. Sid counts the pucks, trying to figure out if the guy saved even one. 

While the Puck Daddy article refrained from judging too harshly, the father is already being raked through the figurative hot coals on Reddit. How dared he put for sale the stuff that had been gifted to his son!

Sid is left bothered. He bought goalie gear for the kid, and his father dared to put them on sale. Not a big deal. And still Sid feels personally offended. Sid's been taken advantage of several times, and usually in bigger issues than this, but he can't help thinking about it, the guy’s face when he looked over his kid receiving the expensive gifts. 

Sid knows it's petty, but he has to do it. Because of reasons. He knows that it's really stupid to try and contact the father, but the thing nags him and he knows that he can't drop it without some kind of a closure. A few phone calls get him the father's name and number from the Salvation Army. It's Phil Kessel. So Sid is going to call this Phil Kessel to get his closure, even if the awkwardness would kill him. 

“Hello?” It’s a nice voice, Sid thinks. Phil sounds a bit vary, like when you get a call from a number you don’t know, and you still have to answer because you have shit for sale. 

“Um. This is Sid Crosby.” 

The man in the other end keeps quiet, forcing him to continue. “I just called to say… Is there anything I can help you with?” _Oh fuck his life._

“You expect for me to apologize?” Kessel doesn’t sound angry, or ashamed. He sounds tired. 

“Uh.” Putting it like that, it sounds petty. A millionaire calls to demand an apology from a man who put his charity stuff up for sale. “It’s just, your son was so happy about the gear. It mattered very much for me to be able to do it. It was an important moment.”

“Yeah? If your meeting was so important, what's my son's name?” Now the voice had a hostile tone.

 _Shit._ What was the kid’s name? He’s been thinking him only as “the kid” but he had to hear it at some point. Something very short and very American. 

“Dan?” He couldn’t help but let his voice raise at the end to make it a question.

“It’s Sam.” 

This wasn’t going very well. Yes, he had been expecting an apology, or maybe an asshole who would have laughed at him and ended the call right there. “I can understand why you did it.” (He totally can’t.) 

“I don’t think that you do. Sid, can I call you Sid?" Sid nods at the empty room, he can't help it. "Sid, there was a reason for us to be there and me to allow my kid to be shown as a public charity case. I’m unemployed. I can't afford to put Sam in hockey. I really can't. It's not just about the gear, it's the league fees and the ice time, and kids that age already go to game trips. It all costs serious money, which I don't have. And if Sam would get serious with goaltending, it would mean special lessons and camps really fast.”

Sid has to pause before answering. “So he can’t go, because of the money, and then there’s no reason to keep the gear. So you might as well sell it.”

“Yeah.” Sid hears a proud man admitting the facts. This is just how it is. 

“And I accidentally promised him that he could start playing again, and then you had to be the one to take it away.”

“That’s pretty much it.” God, Sid feels horrible. 

“It’s shitty, though. Sam really loves to play.” Sid maybe imagines the voice to quiver slightly, the emotions coming through. 

“Maybe I could-.”

“No. We’ve been bothering you enough as it is.”

“Okay, well then. Thanks for taking my call. Have a nice day.”

“Bye.” 

Sid is left holding his phone up. Now at least Phil has his phone number. It feels significant.

A few days later Kuniz shows him a new article. It’s a follow up to their “Man Sells His Son’s signed charity Hockey Gear on eBay” story. They actually contacted the said Man, and an article with a short interview and new information reveal an entire different story. 

The news itself isn’t a surprise to Sid, because he’d just maybe, via several persons, tipped Puck Daddy about it. And he’s glad that he did, because the article now gives a lot more information on Phil Kessel. 

Sid learns that Phil is from Bumfuck, North Kansas, that he’s a single father and that he used to run a bowling alley. Then apparently people ran out of money to go bowling, the estate’s owner got an offer from some real estate developing company, and the place closed down. Phil had moved to Pittsburgh for a job opportunity that had sadly dried out, and Voilà, Salvation Army was your new friend. 

On Reddit Sid reads that the people have smothered their torches and are now discussing on how much hockey costs nowadays and how the price going up might kill some very promising careers before they even start. There is also another thread that tells that some local sports bar chain is planning to purchase the gear, only to then donate it back to the boy. It’s kind of sweet, really.

Phil’s situation is shitty, but knowing that makes Sid somehow feel better. And that makes him feel guilty, so he has to do something about it.

He already has the Hockey School and it is charity based, so Sid already has all the million things that goes to doing non-profit work under the way. Then it’s just phone calls to Anne, the woman who actually runs the charity, and to his accountant. 

And then, a couple of days later, comes the hard part, making Phil accept more charity. Or maybe it will go easy, Sid hopes. But it’s the calling-to-Phil part he’s actually nervous about. 

“Yeah?” Phil answers the same way he did previously. He probably didn’t save Sid’s number, then.

“How good is your kid in hockey, anyway?” _Argh! Abort! What the hell was he saying?_

“Sidney Crosby? And he’s fucking best I’ve ever seen, why?” 

“It’s just, we have this stipend thing? For promising kids to play hockey, who otherwise couldn’t afford it. But it says in their rules that the kid has to be promising, so Sam would need to be at least, uh, _promising_ to apply.”

“So you want him to apply?”

“No, it’s not needed, we can choose him without. Though it would be good? Something informal? I just meant that the requirements have to be fulfilled.”

“So what are they, exactly? The requirements?” Phil didn’t sound very eager, but he was at least mildly interested. Sid could work with that. 

“It’s about the whole, really. We take all things in consideration.”

“And who are _we,_ exactly?” Phil paused. “You set this whole thing up for Sam, didn’t you?”

 _Busted._ “Uh huh? But it’s a real thing, it’s from Sidney Crosby Hockey School and not really from me, and we give out several stipends.” In reality, it was straight from Sid because the Hockey School hadn’t been around long enough to plan any fundraising. They didn’t even sell t-shirts.

“Look, it’s not that simple. Even with the league fees, I don’t think I have the time and money-.”

“But Sam loves hockey, right?” It’s a cheap shot, but Sid had to make Phil stop listing all the reasons for this to be a bad idea. “It covers all the fees, plus all game trips and camps and insurance, and it has a yearly equipment allowance.” The stipend also included a rather generous allowance for gas money and snacks and spending money on trips, but now wasn’t a good time to bring it up. “And it covers the time until Sam turns eighteen, stops playing hockey, or turns professional, whichever comes first.”

“Are you trying to make me an offer I can’t refuse?” Phil sounded doubtful now. When things sounded a bit too good to be true, they usually weren’t.

“Maybe? Or we could meet up to discuss it before you say yes?”

Phil paused again for a second, then, “Are you implying what I think you are implying…?” 

_Shit. Fuck._ "No, I’m not implying anything, I was asking you out! With no strings attached whatsoever!” 

“Oh. Hmm. And this really is not a package deal, the stipend and going out?”

“No, no” Sid denied vehemently. “I just, you know. You made a lasting impression on me. So I would like to know you better.” 

“An unemployed bowling alley manager with a kid, who has gear with your signature on eBay?” 

“Yes.” Though maybe not so unemployed. Their new training facility still needed new people, and Sid might have pulled some strings. Not to secure Phil a job, he would never do that, but Phil might receive some interview requests next week. 

“So okay. It’s a yes, to both.” 

“Really? That’s great!” Except that Sid hadn’t planned his call this far, and he has no idea when he has a free night. “I’ll call you about the time later, and someone will call about the stipend tomorrow, okay? And save my number, man!”

“Okay.”

And then the call is over. _Wow. Great!_ He has a date, with a hot guy who had somehow wormed under his skin only by looking at him with scrutiny. Sid goes to check his schedule. He also makes a mental note to expand his charity’s stipend receivers to two at some point.

**Author's Note:**

> When I uploaded the fic, I found out that this is the first Sid/Phil fic in AO3. So congrats to me ;) Hopefully other writers, too, pick up the Pairing of Awkwardness.


End file.
